Simsek predicts soft landing for Turkey's economy

Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said on Monday that if Turkey maintained 4 percent growth in 2012, it could achieve a soft landing for the economy. Speaking at a conference organized at Marmara University in Istanbul, Simsek said that the world economy was recovering at a time when the EU members and other developed countries were facing debt problems. Simsek also emphasized the importance of EU to Turkey, saying that although a bigger economic crisis has been avoided, the risks in the region are still evident and further steps are being taken to overcome this crisis.  "In addition to the slowdown in the world economy and debt crises in eurozone, a decrease in domestic consumption as well as preventive measures taken by the government have led to a prediction of 4 percent growth for Turkey in 2012," Simsek said.